Thursday, February 22, 2024

Japan/Taiwan/Asia in 2024

  Japan's semiconductor industry is getting a boost from Taiwanese chip companies' expansion here to support a new TSMC (2330.TW) plant.

 Shifting alliances and priorities in the global chip industry are on the increase with the United States pushing to limit China's progress in cutting-edge semiconductors and strengthen its other partnerships. 



Is Japan going to expand its military, too?

Feb 29, 2024

Sri Lanka may stop visa extensions for Russian an Ukranian tourists trying to escape the war. The Tourism ministry has been receiving complaints about some Russian tourists running illegal businesses in the southern part of the country.

March 2, 2024

Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and coast guard have intensified patrols at the border to deter more refugees from the Myanmar civil war.

March 12, 2024

Hey Joe Biden: Since you gave the Taliban control in 2021, Afghan females have lost access to education & employment, and face arbitrary arrests over how they wear their hijabs.

March 18, 2024

Pakistan unleashed airstrikes on hideouts of the Pakistani Taliban inside Afghanistan. This occurred two days after a suicide bombing targeted a Pakistan army post near the Afghan border.






https://vaporvents.blogspot.com/2023/02/india-is-on-rampage-and-more-on-asia.html

Saturday, January 27, 2024

"Eastern" Europe changing times

Metropolitan Ieronymos, bishop of Athens and all Greece, is claiming it remains committed to tradition, while proposing that the children in a same sex family can be baptized when they reach a certain age and express a desire for the sacrament. 

Baptism is traditionally conducted in early childhood, but the church will adapt to changing times.

Compromise🤔 Not sure it sells well.

Jan 28, 2024
Czech Republic's upper house Senate voted against the Istanbul Convention, a treaty with a long title about combatting violence against women. Opponents feel it deviates from "traditional roles" for men and women in society and has not reduced violence in countries that have ratified it. Clauses concerning LBGT rights, particular the wording on gender identity, are hot points for treaty opponents.
Feb 8, 2024
 Finnish Air Force will participate in NATO's air defense mission over Bulgaria, Romania, and the Black Sea. 
Finland's Minister of Defense, Antti Heikkinen, stated that next year, Finland will contribute to NATO's peacetime missions with a Navy ship and eight Air Force F/A-18 Hornet fighters.
Feb 10, 2024
Kosovo's President Osmani wants more NATO's Kosovo Force (KFOR) to deal with Serbia. In September 2023, Serb gunmen stormed a majority Serb village in northern Kosovo and barricaded themselves in a Serbian Orthodox monastery. It never ends. Both countries want to join the EU.
Feb 19, 2024
Margrethe1 derided as "King Breechless"for favoring Denmark too often while ruling(1397-1412) over the tenuous union of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden.
March 9, 2024
March, 3,1878) result of Russo-Turkish War: Actual independence from Ottoman rule was given only to the Principality of Bulgaria (present-day northern Bulgaria and the Sofia region)



Eastern Europe next

Thursday, November 9, 2023

Shaking statues

 Tearing down history takes us down dangerous paths. The statue of Thaddeus Kosciuszko, a Polish born military engineer who help us during the American Revolution, was vandalized a few years ago. WTF. More to come.

In 2001 the Taliban, claiming they were following Islamic law, tore down a statue of Buddha in Bamiyan, Afghanistan.


In 2018 a red angel-shaped statue named Phylax by Greek artist Kostis Georgiou was torn down in  southern Athens, Greece. Black-clad protesters viewed it as Satan like.

Portland: Elk statue was damaged during Occupy Portland protests in 2011. The elk and fountain were donated to Portland by a former mayor David P. Thompson, in 1900 to honor elk that once roamed the Willamette Valley.
The statue was again a target in 2020 and the Regional Arts Council decided the piece needed to be removed for public safety reasons.

In 2018, a bronze statue depicting two children honoring the national anthem in Patterson Park in Baltimore, was defaced with red paint. The words “Racistt Anthem” were painted in front of it.
It was paid for by pennies from public school students more than a century ago. 
The plaque on the statue read:
 “To commemorate the centennial of the writing of the Star-Spangled Banner, the pupils of the public schools of Baltimore have erected this memorial upon Hampstead Hill where in September,1814, the citizen soldiers of Maryland stood ready to sacrifice their lives in defense of their homes and their country.”
Feb 1, 2024
A reminder from Orwell in the book 1984: "History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right.”




earlier blog statues tumble

Sunday, August 13, 2023

Reboot: Figure it out

 Spain's gals' soccer team reaches the World Cup semifinal for the first time after defeating Netherlands 2-1. They made it despite unsuccessful efforts to dislodge Coach Jorge Vilda and the ensuing discord. Maybe lessons learned for all sides? 


Aug 15, 2023

In a seesaw game Spain edges Sweden 3-2 and is going to the WWC final.  Less complaints about Coach Vilda now?

Aug 19, 2023

Spain vs England in final on Aug 20. Coach Valdi tells press we're united and doesn't want to talk about the old mutiny news. He!! of a run for Spain ladies. An old sports adage. Winning cures a lot of ills.

Aug 21, 2023

Spain 1 England 0. Carmona scores the winner for Spain in the WWC.

Charges of attempted rape were dropped against Greenwood(Manchester), but some say his return to the team is not a move forward in terms of proper respect for diversity and inclusion. This new "religion" is a slippery slope.

Aug 24, 2023

 Eamonn Holmes catches flack for dismissing honors for second place Brit gals in WWC. Brit 1966 WC champs: In 1966 it was customary for only the 11 players on the pitch at the final whistle to be awarded medals.

Sept 10, 2023

Spain fires Vilda. The team won the WWC despite 12 of the country's best players quitting in 2022.

Sept 17, 2023

Monste Tomé, named the first female coach of Spain’s women’s team, but the players continue to rebel. Good luck getting another WWC.

Oct 15, 2023

Sanchez's Socialists are talking with Catalan and Basque separatist groups to avoid an election. Huge move and may cause more trouble for Spain. Sanchez is desperate to stay in office.

Nov 8, 2023

In Spain the General Council of the Judiciary, the body that picks top judges, stated that pardoning Catalan politicians, will imperil the rule of law.

This is a response to the Catalan amnesty plan floated by PM Sanchez.

Dec 3, 2023

Isabel Ayuso, an anti-lockdown crusader, crushed Iglesias, whom she called a Communist, to return as a President of the Madrid Region. Stores and bars supported her.

 Of course, most of the press is focused on her possibly working with Vox.

Dec 11, 2023

Olive oil- a luxury item in Spain? Rise in its exports, the problem?

 Italians sell Spanish olive oil under their own brands, so many consumers now believe that the Italians and not the Spanish are the market leaders in the olive business.

Jan 30, 2024

A rally in Madrid against Catalan amnesty bill which was a main condition by Catalan parties for agreeing to support Sanchez's coalition government.

 Spain's lower house of Parliament votes on the bill today and if approved, the law will block legal action against hundreds of Catalan activists who are being investigated or have been charged for their roles in the attempts to declare an independent Catalan state in 2017.




Previous blog: reboot redneck

Wednesday, July 26, 2023

Catsup Canada

 Trudy reshuffles cabinet amid soaring interest rates, wildfires, etc, but is more concerned with bashing Bebe. As goofy as his dad Pierre.

Clinics in Calgary, and elsewhere in Canada are offering membership fees and finding ways to skirt around the law. Apparently, folks are requesting ways to get better service.

Canada censors social media. Here's a line from the late Gord Downie's, "Boots or hearts". See when it starts,To fall apart, Man, it really falls apart.

Sept 20, 2023

Trudeau accuses India of involvement in the death of Nijjar, 45, in British Columbia but offers no proof. India says Ninjar was a bad guy, Both sides are goof, so far.

Sept 26, 2023.

Hey Rota, a quick glance at a history book would've helped. Dear Canada, try vetting. you would've learned that old soldier was in a Ukranian Nazi squad.

Oct 4, 2023

Trudy's word for the day: Denialism. Good luck Canada!

Oct 22, 2023

Canada pledges additional $50 million to help Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. F'N crazy!

Nov 26, 2023

Poilievre's Conservatives vote against carbon tax for Ukraine. CUFTA still made it through the committee stage.but Trudy keeps whining.

Feb 28, 2024

Trudy's Liberal pals in Canada introduced a bill claiming to combat online hate that would force major companies to quickly remove harmful content and boost the penalty for inciting genocide to life in prison. Of course, they use the cover of protecting children from online predators.

Who defines genocide?


earlier blog Hawaii Canada

Thursday, June 1, 2023

Local print media-more stories 2023

  Packers claim it will cost $7.5 million to host the 2025 NFL draft and expect to lose $$$ on the event. Two local state GOP politicians submitted a motion to the Wisonsin Legislature’s seeking a $2 million grant for Experience Greater Green Bay, a group that promotes tourism in the Green Bay area. Perhaps they should file for a loan to be paid back by 2026.  Sales tax revenue from tourists should cover this easily. 

June 2, 2023
Steve Garvey, former 1B for Dodgers and Padres, may run for the US Senate seat in California.
I forgot about this from 1989:  Cyndy Garvey was released from jail one day after she was arrested for refusing to allow her ex-husband, Steve Garvey, court-ordered visits with their two daughters.    In the same year SG admitted that he had fathered the children of two other women and one of them is suing him.
June 19, 2023
San Fran Mayor is mad about a GMA claim it’s ‘too dangerous to film’ in the downtown area, while Biden wants to hold fundraisers in the area in 2024.
July 6, 2023
Nearly 30 train cars crashed in Reeseville, WI in Dodge County, spilling grain and potash. No one was hurt. Another derailment occurred in Crawford County, WI in April. Where's "Mayor" Pete?
July 18, 2023
 Bandimere Speedway, a longtime stop west of Denver on the NHRA circuit, will be sold for residential development. It may be tricky finding another location for drag racing in the Denver area.
Aug 11, 2023
Big Ed's BBQ is expanding in the Midwest. Eddie Nero, the owner, got an early boost from some former Chicago Bears, Jason McKie and Devin Hester. Is the food tasty?
Oct 12, 2023
 CHICKEN FRIED DEVILED EGGS-tasty in local 21236 joint. The Local had some melt-in your mouth apps last night.  those eggs : buttermilk and herb marinade, B&B pickle relish, rosemary
hot sauce, chives. Hot sauce was sweet than kicked in hot.
Oct 24, 2023
  The Phandemic Brew, cool beer name, in Phillies' land. New Jersey brewery, Red White and Brew, has carved out a niche at Citizens Park. 


Dec 12, 2023
K Williams was arrested in Fort Calhoun, Nebraska on charges of homicide for knifing Rev S Cutsgell.  In 2007, SG pleaded guilty to embezzling 127K from an area church. He was sentenced to probation and ordered to pay restitution. Diocese reassigned him to another church. 
Dec 22, 2023
Black barbershops are creating a buzz − over books. So young readers can just 'be boys.

 Alvin Irby, founder of Barbershop Books, has been placing a popular series of children's chapter books in neighborhood shops, including the Germantown section of Philadelphia. 

Black boys are more than just their skin color. They want to read about trucks. They want to laugh. So many of the books that feature black boys don't give them a chance to be boys: silly or gross or funny." quote from Irby.
Jan 15, 2024
Bob Evans restaurant employees confronted Marquis Walker, a New Castle, DE resident, after he paid with a counterfeit $100 bill, but he started to argue with employees and refused to give back the change that he received. He gave back the change, took the counterfeit $100 bill. Delaware State Police chased him on foot and arrested him. He is charged with trying to pay a restaurant bill with a counterfeit $100 bill and with carrying more fake currency.
Jan 18 2024
Baltimore City supports passage of the Pava Marie LaPere Act in the Maryland General Assembly. It will eliminate “good-time credits” for first-degree sex offenders. 
Billingsley, who is is charged with the murder of Pava Marie LaPere, a 26-year-old tech company CEO killed in 2023, received credits following a 2015 conviction on a sex offense.
Billingsley was also charged with a west Baltimore arson in 2023, where investigators claim he raped a woman, handcuffed a man, and slashed their throats in the apartment and then set them on fire.
Jan 22, 2024
Claymont, DE man sentenced to only 6.5 years for blowing up and robbing ATMs in the Philly area in 2020. I can't find his name in the reports.
March 3, 2024
 In Norfolk VA, Port of Virginia opened a two-way passage allowing ultra-large container vessels to travel through and is dredging it and the Norfolk Harbor to 55 feet deep and the ocean approach to 59 feet deep. 
When $450M dredging project is done in fall, The Port of Virginia will have the deepest, widest channels on the USA East Coast.
It quite a site to be on a tour boat and ride by the aircraft carriers in that area.
March 8, 2024
What's that smell around Millsboro DE? Officials claim it's a rotten egg smell caused by the dredging of the Indian river. Others ain't buying that claim.
 Its bringing decaying organic material to the surface and dumping it in nearby wetlands.






https://vaporvents.blogspot.com/2019/05/local-print-media-catching-stories-ive.html




Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Random pop-ups in Europe

 Pope Francis is visiting Hungary later this week, and I doubt he and Orban agree on migrants but may concur on Ukraine. In 2021 Orban met the pope asked him, "not to let Christian Hungary perish". He gave the pope a facsimile of a letter that 13th century Bela IV, the King of Hungary and Croatia between 1235 and 1270, sent to Pope Innocent IV asking for help in fighting the Tartars.

I wonder if the Pope will comment on Hungary's child protection law which the EU hates. That would be "rich" coming from a Vatican that gives cover for pedo priests.
April 27, 2023
So this confusing issue flares up again: Armenia claims that the Russian force has failed to keep open the Lachin corridor, the only land route that links it to Karabakh across Azerbaijani territory.
Russia is a major arms exporter to Azerbaijan and so is NATO member Turkey. 
Russia is a military ally of Armenia.
Toss in Ukraine war.
April 30, 2023
Armenia and Azerbaijan may hold a new round of talks in Washington on Sunday to try to normalize relations.  I guess because the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan will be in Washington DC this weekend. Otherwise, WTF are we, the USA, doing in this mess.
May 10, 2023
 Switzerland's military performed its largest exercises in more than three decades. Big deal for a long-time neutral country.
May 13, 2023
For all the climate change folks: Snow fell in parts of northern Spain yesterday after months of high temps and no rain.
June 3, 2023
Italian PM Meloni: The clampdown on charity ships stops them from acting as "ferry boats" for migrants, going "back and forth with human traffickers to shuttle people from one country to the other."

 Charities' ships are being impounded for ignoring the law.

And to counter so called ‘Pride Month’ Meloni’s has launched ‘Family Pride Month’ to promote the traditional family.
June 6, 2023
Romania is buying two second-hand British minesweepers and two French submarines. Probably to deal with its Black Sea naval fears.
June 18, 2023
Germany will transfer its Patriot missile defense systems, which are currently stationed in Slovakia, to Lithuania to protect the upcoming NATO summit on July 11 and 12.

Shifting gears, Belgian foreign affairs minister Hadja Lahbib is facing calls for resignation after granting visas to delegations from Iranian and Russian cities, which are in countries under international sanctions, to attend a convention of Mayors in Brussels.
June 23, 2023
Some Amsterdam residents don't want to see tourists coming for sex and drugs. You have prostitution museums. Gimme a break!
July 5, 2023
The amount of funds raised for the French cop who shot teenager Nahel M. is 4x the amount raised for NM's family.
Aug 2, 2023
A Scottish lawmaker has been , triggering a by-election that will indicate whether the opposition Labour Party is recovering support from Scotland's dominant pro-independence party.
Aug 1, 2023
Margaret Ferrier (SNP), one of a wave of SNP politicians who swept Labour from its one-time Scottish stronghold in 2015, was stripped of her seat yesterday in Britain's parliament for breaking COVID rules in 2020. Quite a tactic!
Aug 25, 2023
 Macron's advisers feel Le Pen could get elected in 2027 because she'll have the working class and middle class, but it's not due to questions on migration, Hello, runaway migration is a major factor in why she'll have those two groups.
Sept 7, 2023
Bear attacks on humans become an election issue in Slovakia. Over-protected?
Sept 23, 2023
Bulgaria: 115th anniversary freed from Ottoman Empire, also booted out Russia orthodox priest yesterday for being spies.
Sept 29, 2023
Sweden PM Ulf Kristersson called in the chief of the armed forces to help curb a rise in gang killings. New Trend?
Nov 2, 2023
A man tossed dyed rodents into a McDonald's in UK and screamed F^ck Israel. Reuters headline: apparent, anti-Israel protest😕
Nov 20, 2023
Orban's billboard message: let's not dance to Soros Jr and der Leyen tunes

Nov 28, 2023
A man from Kalipetrovo, Bulgaria grilled sandwiches in the office of the electricity distribution company in Silistra to protest that there was no electricity in his house for 24 hours.
Company officials promised the problem will be fixed and that power will be restored to his home within an hour and a half.
Dec 26, 2023
First kiosk in Lisbon opened in 1869 and these cafes are experiencing a revival.
Moorish-style kiosks provide chairs and shade and serve traditional snacks and drinks.
 Prime Minister António de Oliveira Salazar's laws that began in the 1930s discourage public gathering.
Jan 6, 2024
Sint-Truiden, Belgium: This Christmas season it moved its ice-skating rink inside Minderbroederse, an18th-century baroque church that doesn't host services.
Children skate across the nave of the church and past a nativity scene, with Christmas music filling the air and a starry night image projected on the ceiling.
Jan 20, 2024
To counter money laundering and terrorist financing, EU has reached a partial agreement, imposing a €10,000(10.9K USD) cap on cash payments. The agreement, struck between member states and the European Parliament, claims it will safeguard European citizens and the EU financial system from illicit financial activities.

Entities involved in financial services, banking, real estate agencies, asset management firms, casinos, and merchants will be required to adhere to the cash payment limit. And they will be required to verify the identity of individuals making cash payments that range from €3,000 to €10,000.
Jan 25, 2024
Sweden will have to wait until Feb 26 for Hungary to ok its accession to NATO. Orban told NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg that he’ll “urge” parliamentary approval “at the first possible opportunity."
Feb 1, 2024
EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola: "To the farmers that are outside. We see you and we hear you.". I dread these words at work cuz it's just a brush off.
Feb 4, 2024
Portugal moving to the Right ahead of the March 10 snap election. Chega Party is gaining ground in opinion polls. Open Borders and EU climate-mania ain't popular.
Feb 24, 2024
More farmer protests in France amid rumors that Macron invited environmentalist group Soulevements de la Terre to his scheduled debate with farmers' union representatives.




Thursday, March 30, 2023

Africa- so much desert and more

 The building of the Mauritania’s Train du Desert which was completed in 1963 must have been brutal. The train system operates a daily service from the port at Nouadhibou on the Atlantic coast to the iron ore mines in Zouerat. A full journey runs along the border of the disputed territory of Western Sahara and takes around 20 hours. The train is made up of three or four diesel locomotives, one passenger carriage, and between 200 and 210 freight cars. 

Mauritania became an independent nation in 1960.


March 31, 2023

Pirates have abandoned Monjasa Reformer, a Danish-owned ship hijacked in the Gulf of Guinea last week, but have taken some crew members with them. Ransom demands expected shortly.

April 6, 2023

Gunmen in Nigeria's northern Kaduna state kidnapped eight school kids while Nigeria's military fights a long-running Islamist insurgency in the northeast. I know it's sounds like same old sh^t but it serves as a reminder.

May 8, 2023

Rumors of Russian paramilitary group Wagner looking to supply weapons to the RSF in Sudan in exchange for RSF-controlled gold mining resources.

June 4, 2023

Turkey, which sent forces to help the government in Tripoli ward off an assault by eastern forces in 2020, has previously deployed drones from bases in western Libya. Ankara has not commented the June 2 drone strikes by Libya's Government on the western regions of Zawia, Zuwara, Ajeelat, and Maya.  What are Ergodan and Libya's GNU goals?

BTW, this started me thinking about Hannibal fleeing to what is now modern day Turkey. Yes, I know Carthage, Hannibal's base, is in modern day Tunisia.

July 23, 2023

Morocco considers Western Sahara its own territory, but Algeria isn't happy and many some Algerians prefer WS to be an independent state. Is war coming?

July 28, 2023

On-going coup of Bazoum in Niger. Some folks outside the National Assembly waved Russian flags and chanted anti-French slogans.

Sept 8, 2023

Jihad steps up attacks in Mali while UN works on its exit.

Oct 14, 2023

UN forces exit Mali -Fighting intensifies-no surprise- between the army and separatist insurgents in Mali. 

Oct 23, 2023

  Elsewhere in Africa: Moroccan police seized 1.37 tons of cocaine in Casablanca. It was concealed in a cargo of imported frozen fish found at a distribution company and was imported from a Latin American country via Spain, the Moroccan police. Where's Bogey.

EU sanctions the junta in Niger.

Nov 21, 2023

Malawi President Chakwera suspended all foreign trips by government officials, including himself. Let's see how long this lasts.

Dec 2, 2023

Biden promised to visit Angola. He hopes to discuss the Artemis Accords, a pact designed to shape the rules for space exploration with Angola, which has a satellite program that has benefited from Russian support. Angola and Russia have not signed up.

Jan 2, 2024 

 Landlocked Ethiopia signed a memorandum of understanding with Somaliland, a breakaway enclave of Somalia, which give it access to the Red Sea. 

Ethiopia has offered the region a stake in Ethiopian Airlines and will officially recognize it as a sovereign state. Somaliland declared its independence in 1991.

Feb 25, 2024

Canada pledges $59M for the deployment of a Kenya-led multinational mission to support Haitian police in its battle to contain criminal gangs. Quite a path!






Older blog:

https://vaporvents.blogspot.com/2020/10/africa-those-darn-wigs-and-gowns.html

Thursday, February 16, 2023

India is on a rampage and more on Asia

  Indian tax officials examined mobile phones and laptops used by some BBC editorial and administrative employees during an inspection at the British broadcaster's offices in New Delhi and Mumbai. Some are claiming this is in reprisal for a BBC documentary that raised questions about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's behavior in the last 20 years.

India will raise seven new battalions of the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) in the next few years to deal with brewing tensions with mainland China.

Feb 18, 2023

 On February 6 when a Filipino boat was attempting to take supplies to the Sierra Madre, a vessel that is used as a Filipino naval outpost in the South China Sea, a Chinese vessel intercepted it and used a laser device to temporarily blind the crew.

Laser weapons designed to damage eyesight are banned under UN convention, but when did Communist China care about bans.

Feb 26, 2023

Sometimes I forget about Japanese royalty. Naruhito, who was crowned emperor on May 1, 2019, after his father Akihito became the first Japanese emperor to abdicate in two centuries, gave his first public birthday address on Thursday.

March 8, 2023

 Joe Biden's legacy: Universities have reopened in Afghanistan but only for men.

March 20, 2023

China and Cambodia held military naval exercises for the first time in Cambodian waters. I started thinking about the Vietnam War, Mekong Delta, Khmer rouge. etc.

March 21, 2023

I'm a bit surprised that Japan PM Kishida is going as far as visiting Kyiv.  This follows Japan joining Western allies in imposing sanctions on Russia, sending defensive equipment, and offering refuge to those fleeing the Ukraine-Russia war.

April 13, 2023

I had to read this statement twice; Myanmar's military stated that if civilians were also killed in its air strike on a gathering in the Sagaing area, it was because they were being forced to help "terrorists".

April 17, 2023

Atiq Ahmed , former lawmaker in India's parliament who was convicted of kidnapping, was killed along with his brother while police were escorting them for a medical check-up. The assailants were posing as journalists. I keep thinking about Jack Ruby.

April 28, 2023

Many folks in India are offended and have been criticizing a cartoon in Der Spiegel, a German magazine, that they claim is racist and in bad taste. The cartoon shows a dilapidated Indian train, overflowing with passengers, overtaking a fancy Chinese train on a parallel track. Hell, the cartoon acknowledges India is surpassing Communist China. Gimme a break!

May 11, 2023

Ming Pao, a Hong Kong newspaper, will scrap Wong Kei-kwan's comic strip, which has been running since 1983, because it offends the mainland Commies. Censorship grows- no surprise.

June 8, 2023

EU is coming after palm oil and other products by demanding exact proof of which trees are cut down. Malaysia ,etc are its targets. Endless micro-management.

June 30, 2023

India and Philippines vow stronger cooperation dealing with mainland China’s regional claims in the South China Sea which center on a nine-dash line surrounding several islands and waters of disputed sovereignty. They've agreed to the placement an Indian defense attaché in Manila.

July 19, 2023

 Private Travis T. King of the USA Army "stumbles" into North Korea, but Kirby lectures us on abortion. What a Pentagon!

August 16, 2023

Spanish group Inditex will cut ties with Myanmar suppliers. Primark and Marks & Spencer did last year.  I doubt these moves will make the military junta snap to attention.

Sept 5, 2023

 Myanmar's junta will let Kyi rot in jail -her request for an outside physician denied.

Sept 25, 2023

The Philippines claim it will remove a Chinese floating barrier blocking fishing vessel access in the Scarborough Shoal. This will get ugly quickly.

Oct 11, 2023

Hong Kong’s business community struggles due to Beijing’s bounty on those with opposing views. Many in the legal sector are concerned about judicial independence, and some executives are concerned that Hong Kong is losing its business relevance to Singapore and Dubai.

Oct 17, 2023

Chinese and Japanese coast guard ships faced off in waters around disputed islands in the East China Sea

China claims it drove away several Japanese vessels that "illegally" entered territorial waters on Monday around islands, which it calls Diaoyu and is urging Japan to stop all "illegal activities" in the area. However, Japan controls the islands and calls them the Senkaku.

Oct 31, 2023

Pakistan has given illegal Afghan immigrants until November 1 to exit the country and will use force if the deadline is not met.

Nov 12, 2023

Burma Shave occurring too close to China.

Anti-junta offensive in Shan State, on Mynamar's northeast border near China, has displaced at least 50,000 people, with trade routes cut off and several towns seized.

China is asking for all sides to cease hostilities.

More China news: China detained Japanese executives Hiroshi Nishiyama, on suspicion of espionage in March, and he was arrested last month. This has Japanese employees wondering if it is safe to travel to China, Also, Japanese companies in China have been telling employees to keep a low profile.

Nov 27, 2023

South Korea suspends 2018 deal with North Korea and re-starts its aerial surveillance in response to the launch of a satellite by North Korea. NK has also had started to rebuild guard posts along the frontier.

Dec 15, 2023

 KMT Vice Chairman Andrew Hsia, a former Taiwanese diplomat and one-time head of Taiwan's China-policy making Mainland Affairs Council, visited the mainland hoping his party can narrow the DPP, the ruling party, lead ahead of the Jan. 13 presidential and parliamentary elections.

DPP response: "It is no wonder that international public opinion and Taiwan's people have questioned: does the KMT have to report everything to Beijing first?"

Dec 20, 2023

A Japanese court ordered the governor of Okinawa to approve the central government's modified plan for landfill work at the planned relocation site of a key USA Marine base on the southern island despite long running opposition by residents.

Jan 5, 2023

North Korea fired approximately 200 artillery shells into waters off its western coast. This led to an emergency evacuation order for civilians on the border islands of Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong. The Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea confirmed the artillery firings which breached the maritime buffer zone that was set up to reduce border tensions.

South Korean military responded with live-fire artillery drills.

Jan 13, 2023

 William Lai, Keep Taiwan (Free of Communist China), is set to be Taiwan's next president. He is the first presidential candidate in Taiwan to get five million votes.

Jan 17, 2024

  Missiles from Iran targeted two bases in Pakistan of the militant group Jaish al Adl, a Sunni outfit. The Ayatollah is on a rampage in the area.

Jan 26, 2024

Kirin sees Japanese whiskey driving 50% export of premium brand, When I think whiskey Japan doesn't come to mind.

Feb 14 2024

 Myanmar Junta will implement military conscription and bring back retirees due to steep military personnel losses while it's battling a coordinated offensive by an alliance of three ethnic-minority insurgent groups.

Feb 20, 2024

Mainland China's top financial watchdogs' goal is to ensure that the sector adheres to Communist Party values- be wary Hong Kong! Their bumper sticker: socialist economy can work.









prior blog https://vaporvents.blogspot.com/2021/10/focusing-on-asia-in-4q-of-2021.html

Saturday, February 11, 2023

German middle finger, too

 Hans Modrow, the last Communist prime minister of East Germany, died at age 95. Many of today's news reports mention that he oversaw democratic reforms that opened the way to German reunification in 1989. However, they don't mention that in 1993 he was convicted of vote rigging in the municipal elections held in Dresden in May,1989. Or that he gave orders to destroy incriminating Stasi files.

It's quite interesting to consider Modrow's career path. He was a Nazi soldier in WW2 who the Soviets captured and sent to an anti-Fascist indoctrination camp. 

April 11. 2023

 Austria plans to extend checks at its borders with Slovenia and Hungary by another six months from May 11, when the current six-month suspension of free travel over those boundaries expires, and I bet Germany doesn't complain. Illegal immigration is a major world-wide issue regardless of the feelgood rhetoric.

April 20, 2023

"Flashes of Memory: Photography During the Holocaust" is an interesting exhibition that moved from Israel for the first time and is currently presented at Berlin's Museum of Photography. It's a reminder that photography during the Nazi era was used as a tool to manipulate the public opinion but also served to document atrocities for later war crimes trials. So kids, you gotta take the good with the bad. Learn from history, don't deny or erase it.

May 24, 2023

The Fehmarn Belt Tunnel, the world’s longest immersed tunnel, will link Denmark and Germany, and create a land route between Sweden and Central Europe that will be 160 kilometers shorter than it is today.

June 14, 2023

Germany boosts coal imports from Colombia while seeking to phase out fossil fuels at home.

July 12, 2023

 AfD, which is labeled the far right, has nationwide support in Germany of 20%., mostly due to the out of control migration problem. No one wants to work with them, nor address the migration problem. Demonization of AfD is not working.

July 24, 2023

Friederich Merz, the leader of center-right CDU in Germany, now claims he'll work with the AfD on the local level. His tune will change more.

Aug 7, 2023

AFD's polling numbers are on the rise in Germany while it calls the EU a failed project. Will CDU have to work with AFD?

Sept 22, 2023

Is Bavaria with its own border police, the "Texas" of Germany?

Oct 9, 2023

Free Voters and the AfD look set to claim around 30% of Bavaria's vote. Soder(CSU) needs an attitude adjustment. 1, 3, and 4 are center right to right. 




nov 18, 2023:

On November 12, the old 485s trains(Coke cans) took their last runs on Berlin streets. 


Jan 14, 2024
The Dortmund District Court in Germany is pressing forward with deportation proceedings for a Tajik national accused of planning the New Year's Eve terror attack on Cologne Cathedral.
I'm stunned.
Feb 21, 2024
Hamburg is testing debit card for asylum-seekers to prevent state benefits from being sent outside the country. And one recipient is mad because she can't send money back home to pay her debts.
Feb 23, 2024
Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, who is charged with making false statements to a parliamentary inquiry into alleged corruption, will receive the court verdict soon. He could get three years in jail.









Earlier blog on Germany:  


German middle finger

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